Another educator has provided a strong list of critical approaches to this genre. Other critical interpretations could include the following:
Eco-criticism is a fairly new form of criticism that interprets how nature and the environment are treated in literature. Looking at the World State from an eco-critical perspective, we might focus on this state's patterns of consumption. This would involve, first, studying Brave New World in its historical context. The novel was written around 1930: Was there any awareness of environmentalism or ecological damage at that time? Second, how might the average person's divorce from nature in the World State be a symptom of that society's ill health or dehumanization? You might think of Lenina's fright at hovering over the ocean with Bernard in a helicopter or the effects of conditioning Delta children to fear and loathe flowers. Is there something fundamentally amiss in a society so cut off...
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from nature? This, of course, could be extended to the unnatural way reproduction is handled.
The novel also cries out for a source study: first, a phrase in Shakespeare's The Tempest provides its ironic title; second, John the Savage continually alludes to Shakespeare's works. What more can we learn from studying the Shakespearean influence on this book?
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is a social satire that points to the pitfalls of a world controlled by science and technology. Without families, without true religion, without connection to nature, without the opportunities and abilities to express true emotions, the citizens of the New World have no reality, no continuation of a culture, no true humanity.
Yet, as satire, Brave New World is a call to people to not allow such depersonalization through promiscuity and drugs. Personal and emotional relationships are part of the human condition. And, it is through pain that people grow. The great conflicts in life are what build character in people; sorrow is necessary to an authentic existence. With all the drugs and technology in modern society, there clearly seems to be fewer and fewer people who interact with one another in meaningful ways.
Brave New World can be viewed from the following perspectives:
Feminist: how are women (Fanny, Lenina, and Linda) portrayed? Why aren't they Alphas? Why must they take mandatory birth control? Does this lead to happiness and freedom?
Mythological / Archetypal: Who plays the role of the Hero, Loner, Temptress, Spirit, Benevolent Father, Comic Relief, Nemesis? What do colors, shapes, numbers stand for?
Marxist: What is the role of socio-economic class system? Why do the Alphas exploit the lower castes? Is there an unequal distribution of labor?
Freudian / Psychoanalytic: Does John suffer from repression and Oedipal guilt? Is his suicide the result of his guilt over having a relationship with Lenina, a younger version of his mother?
Existential: how does the society limit the choices and freedom of the individual? What role does individuality have in the face of cloning and genetic engineering?
Historical: What are the meanings behind all the names, allusions, and references to science in the novel? What does Huxely believe is the role of science and technology in government?